<p>Does anyone know if they plan to tone down the language in Billy Elliot for Broadway? The London and Australian reviews mention the coarse language. The official web site says that it’s not appropriate for kids under 8. I remember the language in the movie. I think the show opens on Broadway on Oct. 1st-is it in previews now? My girls are 13 and 16-both dancers. I know I could wait until after Oct. 1st to read the reviews and buy tickets, but right now there are good seats to be had at face value.</p>
<p>What do you think? Would I lose my Mother of the Year award if I took them? (My kids’ standard reply to concerns over bad language is: “What the heck, Mom…we ride the BUS to school.”)</p>
<p>I’m not sure that I understand why you’re concerned about 13 and 16 year olds seeing the show. There is no official show advisory for Billy Elliot. Many of the young actors who have played Billy are only 13, including one who will be in the Broadway cast, and there are kids even younger than that in the show. It’s a wonderful evening of theatre and I would recommend it to anyone.</p>
<p>I can’t imagine that there would be any language in the show that a 13 year old hasn’t already heard. I wouldn’t be concerned at all. Of course my parents took me to see Hair when I was 12. :)</p>
<p>missypie-LOL on the “bus” comment. Exactly what my kids would have said. I waited until my boys were 16 before we took them to see RENT, but I am the “Mean Mom” of the year on an ongoing basis. That being said, I’m sure that Billy Elliott would be just fine for kids that age. A 10 year old? No.</p>
<p>This has got me thinking. From my perspective, they are only words. What is the concern about particular words being heard? Are you concerned it will adversely impact your girls in some way or is it about protection of your own self-concept, of what makes a ‘good’ mother? </p>
<p>In my books you’d be a good mother regardless of what decision you make here.</p>
<p>One of my law partners took his 11 year old daughter to see “Saving Private Ryan.” I thought that was quite inappropriate for the average 11 year old, due to violence and general intensity. I don’t want to be the mom who takes my girls to a show that turns out to be inappropriate for them. But I’ve seen the movie and other than the language, I don’t recall any inappropriate content. Sounds like we all would enjoy it.</p>
<p>I would not take a child to a movie where there was a lot of gratuitous sex and especially a lot of violence. </p>
<p>I did have the shock of my life when S1 wrote an article in his 6th grade class newsletter that a survey that had been conducted by some specialist “sucked.” We don’t use that kind of language at home, and I did not realize–silly mom–that he would have learned it in school. We took him to see Schindler’s List in 7th grade and he was profoundly moved.
We loved Billy Elliot the movie.</p>
<p>We have no set rules about movies or plays. I did stand firm with my oldest when she wanted to see Titanic in the 5th grade. Of course her line was she was the only one who had not seen it.
I also monitored closely the movies that child #2 saw since he was extremely emotional and any scene with anyone dying caused him weeks of fears.
With cable TV, the bus and just school in general our kids are exposed to language, sex and other issues that are beyond our control. Even the books that are marketed to young adults contain things that many parents would feel is not appropriate. The stuff they show on MTV is in my opinion pretty bad. If I see it on I ask them to turn it off. Do they watch it at friends or when I am not around. I am sure they do.
Billy Elliot will not contain anything that your kids have not seen or heard. Is hearing that language going to cause them to start using that language. I highly doubt it. I think many of us would be shocked to hear some of the language our kids use amongst their peers.
I remember when American Pie came out and it was the talk of all the high school kids. I did not let my kids see it. But the reality was that all the stupid and crude scenes and jokes were repeated over and over. So by not seeing the movie they were not shielded from the content.</p>
<p>I think sex/violence/language used appropriately and in context adds to the production-but not gratuitously.</p>
<p>I haven’t seen Billy Elliot, but it has gotten good reviews & I would not be worried about language impacting teens understanding and enjoyment of the performance.</p>
<p>but this reminds me that my D really enjoys live performances, attending Wicked last year ( or the year before) was one of the few things that she does with me willingly that doesn’t involve shopping. I am going to see what is coming up in the area.</p>
<p>My children watched Billy Elliot at a relatively young age (younger son was probably around 10). I don’t remember specifically if it had objectionable language, but then again I have a bizarrely hard time understanding strong “non-posh” English accents. I might have missed some doozies, but then my children probably did too.</p>
<p>haha, I liked the “BUS” comment too. Regardless of what they hear at home, be assured that by 12 most kids have heard EVERYTHING when it comes to language. And, as much as we don’t want to admit it, they probably say a lot of it when they are with their friends. I had to ask my D’s what some phrases meant, as early as middle school (and even though they are top students and generally pretty conservative when it comes to wild activities, etc.) they usually could tell me. Then they started pointing H and me to the online “Urban dictionary”. Woooaa–more info than I wanted to know!!!</p>
<p>Bottom line, if your kids are dancers, go for it!!!</p>
<p>I took my daughter to see it in London when she was 17 and she just loved it. It is a wonderful show. The language is not worse than anything they will here at school.</p>
<p>I always remember a friend over here renting the video of the movie. She watched it once and felt she missed a lot because of the strong accents. So she watched it again with close caption - she hadn’t even realized how much language there was (with the accents it she totally missed it) till she saw it in writing :)</p>